In a report published by the company, Dana Gas “reported a net profit of AED 586 million ($160mm) in 2023 as compared to AED 667 million ($182mm) in 2022. The decline in profits was primarily due to lower realized hydrocarbon prices partly offset by a production increase in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) and reduced operating costs.”
Crescent Petroleum and its affiliate, Dana Gas, struck a deal with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in 2007 to develop the Region’s substantial gas resources. They also agreed to establish Kurdistan Gas City, a major new gas-utilization industrial complex to promote private sector investment. Dana Gas has developed its production capacity gradually to 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day.
The company operates the Khor Mor field, a critical gas field in Sulaimani province’s Chamchamal district.
“In November 2023, to help meet the growing power demand and further support local power generation, the Company achieved a record production output of 520 MMscf/d,” the report said, adding that net production in the Kurdistan Region increased by 8 percent throughout the year.
An expansion project currently in the works at Khor Mor, known as KM250, is expected to increase the production of gas to 700 MMscf/d by April 2023. The project is supported by a 7-year $250 million financing agreement between Dana Gas and the US International Development Finance Cooperation.
The project is expected to be completed in the second half of 2024, according to Dana Gas, who reported “steady progress” on the expansion in 2023.
“2023 was an operationally strong year for Dana Gas, but not without its challenges. In the KRI, we achieved record production in our gas output, an accomplishment that underscores our ability to optimize our resources,” said Richard Hall, CEO of Dana Gas.
On the company’s outlook for 2024, Hall said “our focus remains on developing our world class assets in the KRI and maximizing the value of our Egypt assets.”
Khor Mor’s strategic and economic importance for the Kurdistan Region has made it a key target of rocket and drone strikes by Iran-backed Iraqi militias, threatening the gas production capabilities of Dana Gas as well as future expansion works.
In late January, a liquid storage tank in Khor Mor was struck by a weaponized drone, causing a halt in gas production and a significant power outage in the Kurdistan Region.
Despite the security threats on the gas field and repeated attacks, Dana Gas said in 2022 that they would be able to meet the Kurdistan Region’s full gas demands in about two years.
